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Post by novastar6 on Sept 8, 2017 23:50:04 GMT
I always wanted to do this on the old board. You always hear people say 'everybody needs to see this movie', 'everybody needs to read this book', etc., but I'm not speaking in that generic exaggeration, there are books that I really think EVERYBODY needs to read, that they might learn something, it might broaden their horizons, that they would gain some insight and wisdom, put them in tune with their history, truly move and/or inspire them, or make them laugh themselves sick, or just because it's a hell of a great book. So the idea would be everybody takes a turn listing a book they think fits this category, and optionally, the reason why you think it's important that people read it. And to cut down on confusion, a whole series will be listed as one entry.
1. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. The reasons I think are self evident in today's world, we're more than halfway to becoming it already.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 9, 2017 0:08:58 GMT
2. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
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Post by BATouttaheck on Sept 9, 2017 1:00:47 GMT
3. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck (then after you read it watch all of the film adaptations)
Dreams. Friendship. Inevitability.
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Post by karryon99v2 on Sept 9, 2017 4:02:45 GMT
4.1984 by George Orwell
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Post by novastar6 on Sept 9, 2017 4:16:17 GMT
5. Don't Make a Black Woman Take Off Her Earrings by Tyler Perry. Written as Madea, it's funny as hell but also chock full of excellent advice for life.
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Post by darknessfish on Sept 9, 2017 19:48:20 GMT
6. Q - Luther Blisset
Basically a history of the protestant reformation written as a swashbuckling romp, while also being a kind of allegory about the power of anonymity, anarchy and resistance to authority and government.
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Post by novastar6 on Sept 9, 2017 23:26:13 GMT
7. Not exactly a series, but the 3 books written by Sadie and Bessie Delany about their long lives (105 and 108).
Having Our Say
The Delany Sisters' Book of Everyday Wisdom
and On My Own at 107
you learn a whole lot of life from these ladies, how it was 100 years ago, how it was for them at 100, how it should be today. Lot of good advice on family, money, health, some recipes for homemade wine, chocolates, etc. And be sure to check out the pictures, 102 and doing yoga, foot clear behind the head, these ladies were doing something RIGHT.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Sept 10, 2017 0:58:06 GMT
8. Three Men in a Boat - Jerome K. Jerome.
Just funny as all get out and even better if you have ever boated on the Thames while reading "Three Men in a Boat" !
Bin there. Dun that. No T-shirt !
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Post by NewtJorden on Sept 10, 2017 21:24:23 GMT
9. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
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Post by novastar6 on Sept 10, 2017 22:45:34 GMT
10. Walking On by Dwana Pusser, the real story about her father, Buford Pusser from which we got the Walking Tall movies.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Sept 11, 2017 4:39:09 GMT
11. On The Beach - Nevil Shute
"Fiction" ?
Keep those fingers crossed.
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Post by bravomailer on Sept 11, 2017 13:44:58 GMT
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Witty and mordant look at the rise of militarism in the US. Heller occasionally said that the book was about the Cold War, not WW2.
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Post by novastar6 on Sept 11, 2017 17:45:20 GMT
13. Freedom Writers Diary. A prime example of the more things change, the more they stay the same, and the more different you are, the more alike you are.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2017 12:54:29 GMT
14. The tale of Genj by Murasaki Shikibu
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Post by twothousandonemark on Sept 12, 2017 16:13:37 GMT
15. The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien
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Post by Terrapin Station on Sept 12, 2017 16:25:44 GMT
I don't actually think that there any books that everyone needs to read.
I would say that there are topics that everyone should read about/learn if they want to be generally educated, but the exact book(s) they read on those topics can vary. The topics I have in mind are simply typical subject matter you find in school--say, a typical list of undergraduate majors at a large university.
Also, if you want to be generally culturally educated, you need to be familiar with certain authors, at least, but even with that, being familiar with some Shakespeare, some Dickens, some Steinbeck, etc. would be sufficient. You wouldn't have to slog through a complete Shakespeare, or the whole of Remembrance of Things Past, or even War and Peace or Ulysses or Moby Dick or the Odyssey.
For the most part, read what you want to read, what you're interested in, what appeals to you, what you find entertaining. The important thing is that you simply read a lot, and for non-fiction, that you read things that are well-researched (and footnoted), well-reasoned, etc.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Sept 12, 2017 17:13:50 GMT
16. The Harry Potter series.
A while ago it would have been in self defense just to find out what all the fuss was about.
Now .. it's a fun, easy to read adventure and friendship story for all ages even if you don't really care for fantasy type stories.
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Post by deembastille on Sept 12, 2017 20:04:55 GMT
17 Jane Eyre.
18: How to Archer, by Sterling Archer {yes, seriously} it's just funny.
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Post by novastar6 on Sept 13, 2017 2:19:49 GMT
19. Mockingbird by Walter Tevis, a bit hard to find but definitely worth the search. One reviewer called it an unofficial sequel to Fahrenheit 451, not exactly but it's pretty close.
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Post by OldSamVimes on Sept 13, 2017 11:02:38 GMT
Zorba the Greek.
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